Blackstone Group To Acquire Murka Games

Posted on 2019-03-22 by Sean Williamson

The Blackstone Group, a famous American equity group, seems to have decided to really ramp up its interests and shareholding in the casino industry, and this time round, the social casino games sector. The group has made an acquisition offer to take over the business and operational interests of Ukrainian social casino games developer Murka.

According to sources, the acquisition will be brought to fruition by means of a specially created financial vehicle. Tribe Cyprus Bidco Ltd will, on behalf of the Blackstone Group, acquire and buy all of the assets currently belonging to Murka Ltd and Murka Entertainment Ltd.

Murka At The Top Of Its Game

Currently, the Commission for Protection of Competition of the Republic of Cyprus must still approve the acquisition, and this would be the final step towards concluding the deal. The purchase price has not been disclosed by either party to the transaction.

Murka has been involved with the development of social casino games since first having been established back in 2011. The company is headquartered in Kiev, and employs more than 100 people at its three offices that are spread out across the Ukraine.

Popular titles developed by the brand include Vegas Slots, Royal Fortune Slots, Slots Journey (1 and 2), and Scatter Slots, to name but a few. According to Murka, it enjoys the patronage and support of more than 5 million active players every month.

Blackstone Knows The Industry

In 2016, social casinos were valued to be worth an estimated $3.8 billion as a global sector. By acquiring Murka, Blackstone will have moved another step closer towards becoming a broad-bases casino industry investor-owner. The social casino market is expected to grow into an even more lucrative global deal that what it was back in 2016.

Social casino games generate revenue by offering in-application sales and advertising space and services. Virtual chips and in-game purchases are all designed to enhance the overall player experience, and no real money is tendered on the chance of winning more money.

The Blackstone Group already owns a number of casino industry endeavours, including Spanish gambling giant Cirsa, as well as the luxury strip hotel The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.